This invention relates to normal shock sensing, and more particularly to optical frequency encoding for normal shock and position sensing.
Prior art systems utilize various means for shock detection; e.g., pressure sensors and acoustics have been used, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,302,657 to Bullock utilizes temperature sensors to detect shock position.
A current method of normal shock detection which utilizes a coherent image bundle is shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/984,166 filed Nov. 20, 1992, now abandoned, and also assigned to The Boeing Company.
An optical normal shock sensor utilizing a coherent image bundle necessitates a fiber per pixel to transmit linear position information. The result of utilization of a coherent image bundle is the requirement for a large number of fibers.